TOKYO (Reuters) -Sanae Takaichi, a veteran of Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and a fiscal dove, has decided to run in the party’s leadership race after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said he would step down, Kyodo news agency reported late on Monday, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Ishiba announced his resignation on Sunday, saying he was taking responsibility for bruising elections that saw his ruling coalition lose its majority in both houses of parliament amid voter anger over rising living costs.
LDP lawmakers have started preparing their bids to replace outgoing premier Ishiba. Frontrunners of the race are Takaichi and Shinjiro Koizumi, son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, who gained prominence as Ishiba’s farm minister tasked with trying to rein in soaring rice prices.
(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Tom Hogue)
